We arrived in high spirits on a very busy Saturday morning at
the Port of Dover for our survey across the Strait of Dover to
Calais, France. Even though the weather was forecast to be
unsettled and a little choppy due to the south-westerly winds
blowing across the English Channel, we were keen to head out to sea
and look for wildlife.

Whilst we waited to board the ship, we discussed the
recent sighting of the Humpback Whale during another MARINElife
survey that was undertaken in February and which Paul had been part
of. We said that it would be amazing if that were to happen again
today and one of the joys of conducting sea surveys is that you
never know what you could encounter, so fingers crossed!

After a swift and efficient boarding, we headed to Deck 7 to the
Guest Information desk and we were met by Christine, who was very
friendly and welcoming. Christine escorted us to the bridge, and we
were warmly greeted by Captain Des Frennes who made us feel very
welcome and we settled into our workstation on the starboard side.
The bridge crew are always so friendly and accommodating. It is a
pleasure to have the opportunity to observe their work. The Cotes
des Flandres crew began the manoeuvres to leave the berth and
turned the ship towards the mouth of the harbour.

Leaving the harbour and starting the survey, the
conditions were favourable as it was dry with scattered clouds, a
sea state 3 with a slight swell and good visibility to the horizon.
As the ship increased speed and moved further out into the strait,
the south-westerly winds were blowing at 23 knots and with this the
sea state increased from 3 to 5 with an approximate 1.5 metre
swell. Sightings of birds were almost immediate, Herring Gull,
Sandwich Tern, Common Scoter, Gannet and a Great Skua, but no
cetaceans as we approached the French coastline. We did see a
bottling Grey Seal off the port bow that stared up at the Cotes des
Flandres as she entered the Port of Calais.

It was a quick turnaround in Calais and before we knew it, we
were heading back to Dover. The weather had improved slightly for
our return journey with a decreased sea state 4, sunny intervals
and continuing good visibility. Bird sightings remained steady as
we sailed away from the French coastline with Kittiwake,
Black-headed Gull, Great Black-backed Gull and a solitary Pomarine
Skua moving across the bow. We were unable to determine which
species it was, but a seal was seen milling 275 metres ahead of the
ship on the starboard side and slipped beneath the waves as we
approached.

With fifteen minutes left until we docked and the White Cliffs
of Dover clearly visible, a circling Gannet caught our attention
310 metres ahead of the ship and as we observed it, two small
triangular dorsal fins broke the surface beneath it. A mother and
calf Harbour Porpoise, swimming hastily away from the ship and
towards the starboard side. The calf was tiny and looked only a few
weeks old as it swam awkwardly at its mother side, both rolling at
the surface a few times before disappearing. The Gannet followed
them and what a beautiful sight!

The sighting of the two Harbour Porpoise, two seals and plenty
of birdlife had left us feeling elated and as the ship entered the
Port of Dover, we said a massive thank you to the bridge crew and
left them to complete their manoeuvres.

Huge thanks go to Captain Des Frennes, his crew, Christine and
the staff of Cotes des Flandres for their kind hospitality, and to
DFDS Seaways for their continuing support.